Russia could cripple Britain by cutting just 60 undersea cables that carry 99 per cent of our data, a worrying new report warns. Vessels in Vladimir Putin’s “shadow fleet” – ships operating secretly to avoid sanctions – have been blamed for sabotaging telecommunications cables, oil and gas pipelines and electricity cables keeping countries connected, reports the Telegraph.
And Britain is particularly vulnerable, experts say, with disruption to undersea cables “akin to a major military attack” – throwing our economy and everyday lives into chaos. The UK has 45 cables which connect with countries overseas, with roughly £1.15trillion in financial deals flowing through every day, linking Wall Street with the City of London, and European financial capitals to North American partners.
But Professor James Bergeron and Charlotte Kleberg, for the Council on Geostrategy think tank, warned in the report: “Accidental damage from weather or (innocent) anchor dragging is unlikely to threaten Britain’s network significantly. A more concerted effort to cut several key data cables simultaneously would be required.”
Russia presents particular challenge, seeks to dissuade NATO and EU support for Ukraine
They continued: “Difficult to monitor and protect, undersea information cables are vulnerable to deliberate disruption, with Russia presenting a particular challenge. In conflict with Ukraine, it seeks to dissuade NATO and EU states from supporting Kyiv. With its land forces drained, maritime activity presents an attractive means of sub-threshold action. Furthermore, the Kremlin has made it clear that it does not see a sharp distinction between peace and war, but rather a continuity.”
The pair added: “Without the internet and the cloud, air and maritime transport would be disrupted, critical aspects of the National Health Service (NHS) could not function, pay would not arrive in current accounts, and supermarket shelves would be empty. Any widespread disruption could threaten national security.”
And the report also doubted if Labour would respond to Moscow unless there was a critical incident. It said that while Russia’s current efforts are “aimed at structural damage” they fall “below the threshold of the UK’s willingness to escalate.”
“The essence of this strategy is implausible deniability,” the report reads. “While some incidents arise from accidents and negligence, others are suspicious but undetermined. This difficulty of attribution, combined with the challenges of monitoring and protection, makes the undersea domain well-suited to sub-threshold tactics.”
Former defence secretary: UK vulnerable, needs to invest more in defence
Former defence secretary Ben Wallace added that “all countries that rely on fuel for energy are vulnerable to countries like Russia”, and that the UK has “started” to defend itself but has “a lot more to do.” Mr Wallace conceded that “you can’t change the fact we are reliant on cables”, but that “the only solution” is to invest more in our defence.
Yet Keir Starmer yesterday refused to say when he will hit his own target of spending 3 per cent of GDP on defence. Speaking in PMQs, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch asked the PM if he could say “in what year” the UK will reach this target for defence spending. But Sir Keir refused to directly answer the question and instead took the Tories to task on their own record on defence spending.
It comes as Royal Navy chief General Sir Gwyn Jenkins warned that Russia is once again pouring money into its elite deep-sea sabotage force – a highly secretive group capable of carrying out “physical action” against vital seabed infrastructure.
The Kremlin has been stepping up its surveillance of British undersea cables in recent months. In December, Defence Secretary John Healey said that a Russian spy ship had used lasers to ward off RAF pilots tracking its activity near UK waters. Mr Healey said this was the second time the Yantar, part of the Kremlin’s shadow fleet, had entered UK waters last year. The UK had “military options ready should the Yantar change course,” he added.
